BadgerCare Basic approved

The legislature approved Badger Care Basic today, which will allow adults without dependent children to buy into a health care program for a $130 a month premium. Kathleen Vinehount (who has not responded to my email on a separate matter) was the only Democrat to vote against the bill, which passed by one vote.

Now, the program is not supposed to cost the state any money. It’s all supposed to come out of the premium. However, Republicans insist that the revenue generated from the premiums will not be enough to cover the costs of “a very sick population,” and that the state will inevitably be forced to chip in.

That may be true, but even if that is the case, it does not spell fiscal disaster. The program concerns less than 25,000 people. I will look into the numbers and try to get some stats on the average age etc. of the target population. I suspect there are quite a few young people in the program, many of whom are in good health.